This invention relates to a door mechanism for equipment such as commercial laundry dryers, and particularly to a door mechanism wherein a movable door becomes wedged into a tight seal with the dryer when the door is closed.
A typical commerical dryer includes a tumbler which rotates about a central axis within a tumbler enclosure. The enclosure is pivoted about either a top or bottom pivot in order to expel dried goods. The enclosure has an opening through which wet goods are inserted and dried goods are removed. Some type of door is provided for closing the enclosure opening.
One type of typical dryer door mechanism utilizes one or more pivoting connections between the door and the dryer enclosure. To open such a door, the door must be swung out and away from the enclosure, thereby requiring that the space adjacent to the door be open and unobstructed. These pivoting types of doors move through a circular arc and are held closed by a force that is perpendicular to the plane of the door and the enclosure opening. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,852,236, 2,906,035, 3,064,361 and 2,768,451 disclose doors with such pivoting means.
Another type of dryer door mechanism utilizes a door that slides, in a direction parallel to the plane of the enclosure opening. When these sliding doors are closed, the leading edge of the door exerts a force parallel to the plane of the door. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,509,275 and 4,015,930 disclose such sliding doors. However, such a door is not forced perpendicular to the plane of the door against the enclosure. Without such a perpendicular force, the sliding door is not effectively sealed at the sides and trailing edge of the door.
The pivoting doors and the sliding doors have previously been directly attached to the enclosure. In those instances where the enclosure is pivotable, the door also pivots with the enclosure. This also requires extra unobstructed open space for the door to pivot through.